As digital advertising becomes more and more essential and appealing to real estate agents to grow their business, many have stopped more traditional practices like holding open houses. The promise of quick and easy leads from online sources leave agents feeling like these more personalized experiences aren’t necessary. However, this couldn’t be further from the truth. When done correctly, open houses can increase an agent’s overall brand equity, be a powerful source of leads and still be the vehicle to move a significant percentage of your listings. Not to mention, in the age of online and tech focused competitors, more personal tactics like this can really set you apart. The key is to understand the correct way to prepare, host, and follow-up from each open house to extract the maximum benefit.
The Preparation
An open house that is quickly thrown together without planning and marketing will yield disappointing results. If you want to maximize your traffic and exposure, you need to look at it as an “event” not an item to check off the list. Take to the streets with flyers and door hangers and promote it online. Get the word out to potential buyers, as well as neighbors with friends who may know potential buyers, that this is their chance to see the home. We recommend starting about a week before the event on digital sources and you should post pictures and related material on your social pages daily, leading up to the event. Think about how you can make this an experience for those who attend. It is important to keep track of all that needs to be done which is why agents should have a clear-cut system in place to stay organized throughout the process.
The Open House
Let’s say you’ve done all your preparation well; there is still significant promotion to be done the day of the open house. Be sure that all of your signage is out and visually attractive to capture the attention of people in the neighborhood. This is great low-cost advertising–even to those who do not attend! Seeing your open house signs week in and week out goes a long way toward building brand in your community and ensures you get the call when a consumer is ready to make a move.
If the house is empty for a few moments, hop onto Instagram, Facebook Live, YouTube Live, and/or SnapChat to show people who couldn’t make it what they are missing. For those that do come through, make sure you have them sign in to capture their name and contact information, so you can follow up with them later. Make sure you ask them if they are working with an agent. If they are there to buy, there is a good chance they have property to sell as well. Make sure you welcome each guest and walk them through the home if you can. Make the most of their interaction with you–show off your knowledge, your professionalism and attention to detail. This is real estate marketing 101, but as a broker, it never hurts to remind your agents of the basics.
Tech savvy brokers and their agents may even consider running digital ads the day of the open house, concentrated on a geography around the home. New advertising technologies such as “Geo-Fencing” and others, can target people on their mobile devices when they come within a radius of your event!
The Follow-Up
In addition to getting the listing sold, it is a primary goal to capture new buyers/sellers that aren’t already working with an agent. As soon as the open house is complete, it is important to follow up with the buyers that passed through the property within 24-48 hours of the event. A good real estate CRM is essential to this activity to keep follow-up organized and efficient. Even if someone is already working with an agent, it is important to follow up with them to get their insights about the property and learn what they liked or disliked so you can keep that in mind for your marketing efforts.
For many brokers, organizing a comprehensive system of training, activities and supporting tools to help their agents make the most of every open house can seem like a daunting task. But when you team up with a brand like Weichert, all the work is already done for you. All you have to do is plug in and use the resources. From checklists and suppliers for materials to scripts, tips, and marketing templates, Weichert associates have access to everything they need to make these events successful. Weichert even provides the CRM to help manage and organize pre-event invitations and follow-ups.
Weichert believes in the importance of personal connections and developing meaningful relationships with clients. Embracing face-to-face strategies like open houses are a key to doing this. It’s these types of strategies that generate human connections that will feed your sales production and create a pipeline of business for your brokerage for years to come.
For more information about Weichert and their suite of real estate marketing tools and systems go to www.weichertfranchise.com or call us at 877-567-33350.
